Objective: This study was planned to determine the levels of anxiety and hopelessness because of living in this region in Çermik county of Diyarbakır province where asbestos-related diseases (asbestosis, maling mesothelioma, etc.) are most frequently seen.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Yukarışeyhler district bound to Çermik county of Diyarbakır province known as environmental asbestos in 01-31 July 2010. 292 people over 35 years living there were reached. 305 individuals selected by systematic sampling from adults in the Çarıklı district of Diyarbakır province (known to have no environmental asbestos exposure) were taken as a comparison group. Survey form to determine the demographic characteristics of the participants, "State-Trait Anxiety Inventory" and "Beck Hopelessness Scale" were used. People were interviewed face to face. Student t test was used to examine differences between the two groups. Descriptive analyzes such as frequency, number, percentage and chi-square test were used to compare numerical data. The level of significance was taken as p<0.05.

Results: It was observed that age and gender distribution of asbestos-exposed and non-asbestos-exposed individuals were not different (p>0.05) in this study. The subjects who were exposed to asbestos were found to have higher mean condition-related anxiety (43.2±9.6), trait anxiety (47.7±8.9) and hopelessness levels (7.5±5.1) than those not exposed to asbestos (37.9±7.9; 43.4 ± 8.8; 5.5±3.9, respectively). The difference between the m was statistically significant (p<0.05).

Conclusions: This study has shown that exposure to environmental asbestos increases levels of anxiety and hopelessness in individuals. There is a need for more extensive studies in order to establish the mental states of the individuals living in these regions and to develop solution proposals for this reason.